December 17, (THEWILL) – The World Health Organisation (WHO) has appointed Dr. Ayoade Olatunbosun-Alakija as special envoy for the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT-A).
WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, announced the appointment in a statement on Thursday.
Dr. Alakija joins former Prime Minister of Sweden Carl Bildt, WHO’s current Special Envoy for ACT-A, in this role.
In her capacity as special envoy, “Alakija will help lead the collective advocacy for the ACT-Accelerator, mobilizing support and resources so it can deliver against its new Strategic Plan and Budget that was launched on 28 October 2021, and ensuring that the response is characterised by accountability, inclusion, and solidarity”, the statement said.
According to the statement, Dr. Alakija will also support the leaders of the ACT-Accelerator’s three product pillars including vaccines, tests, treatments and cross-cutting ‘connector’, consult widely on the work of the ACT-Accelerator; advise the Director-General, ACT-Accelerator principals and stakeholders on emerging issues; and represent the ACT-Accelerator in key national and international fora.
“Dr Alakija brings a tremendous track record in advocating for equitable access to vaccines, tests and treatments, especially for Africa.
“She joins us at a critical juncture in the fight against COVID-19, with the Omicron variant threatening to further constrain equitable access to vaccines, just as the pace of supply was improving. We are very much looking forward to working with her to advocate for the full financing of the ACT Accelerator, and to meeting the global targets for COVID-19 vaccination, testing and treatment”, the statement added.
Dr Ayoade Olatunbosun-Alakija is the founder of the Nexus Hub, an innovation centre, research, social development and emergency response unit for the West Africa/Sahel region headquartered in Abuja, Nigeria.
She is a published researcher and in collaboration with the World Health Organization and UNICEF has led multi-country behavioural health surveys across several nations in the Pacific Region.
Dr Alakija is currently co-chair of the Africa Union Vaccine Delivery Alliance for COVID-19 (AVDA), serves on the global advisory board of WomenLift Health and is chief strategist of CONVINCE Africa.
Alakija, a medical doctor with a Masters degree from The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in Public Health and Epidemiology, was formerly a Chief Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria and led the joint national and international humanitarian response in the Lake Chad region between 2016 and 2019.
While based in Fiji, she worked closely with WHO and UNICEF to design, coordinate, and implement National Health and Behavioural Surveys across the pacific region.
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